"Mine Is Mine"

If you went to college in the mid-1980s and are wondering about the deleterious effect of smartphones and stuffy, US News-ranking obsessed deans on campus culture, there are a couple of things that remain eternal: it's incredibly likely that you'll be able to get a pitcher of beer for the same price you paid in the Reagan era, kids will never stop going to class dressed bummy as shit, and "college rock" still sounds like the sort of thing Line & Circle are doing right this moment. Appropriately enough, Brian J. Cohen and Brian Egan met as undergrads in Ohio before heading towards Los Angeles and expanding to a quintet.

On the heels of the promising "Roman Ruins" single, "Mine is Mine" is Line & Circle's most striking and forthright track to date, crisply produced by Lewis Pesacov (Best Coast's Crazy For You) and the Philadelphia duo of Brian McTear and Jonathan Low (the War on Drugs). With Mozz-y theatricality, Cohen moans "All of my friends are falling in love" in a way that suggests their happiness is his sadness, while the guitars wring out dour notes and the rhythm section pushes forward in a wakeful daze. Regardless of the certainty of its title, "Mine is Mine" is defined by its mixed feelings, both familiar and implacable, evoking an enviable experience Cohen could never have: skipping class to hit the record store and spending whatever he found in the couch cushions on the latest I.R.S. or 4AD release.